Despite the close scoreline – Australia 5-155, New Zealand 7-151- the Australians delivered a solid performance, with 20-year-old Georgia Wareham receiving player of the match. The leg-spinner scored some of the match’s key wickets, finishing with an impressive 3-17 from her four overs.
Georgia Wareham finishes her four overs 3-17.
WHAT A SPELL! 🐺🐺🐺 pic.twitter.com/BFhZWAZahW
— Australian Women’s Cricket Team 🏏 (@AusWomenCricket) March 2, 2020
In a devastating moment for the Australians, star all-rounder Ellyse Perry limped from the field in the 11th hour, after suffering a hamstring injury.
The injury has ruled out Perry from taking part in the rest of the tournament, including the must-win semi-finals in Sydney on Thursday.
Perry had entered Monday’s match already dealing with a troubled hip issue, but passed a fitness test in the hours leading up to the game.
The ultimate warrior.
We’re all behind you, Pez ❤️ pic.twitter.com/985LJAWoUX
— Australian Women’s Cricket Team 🏏 (@AusWomenCricket) March 2, 2020
Last month, Perry took home the prestigious Belinda Clarke Award after a memorable 12-months of cricket.
In a post-match press conference, Australian captain Meg Lanning said she was happy with the team’s performance.
“I think we started well and were able to calm the situation down early with Beth Mooney playing a really good hand for us,” she said.
“We were under the pump with the ball a little bit but I thought we dealt with it extremely well and to get over the line against a really good New Zealand team…’relief’ is a good word.”
When asked about Perry, Lanning said, “We’re not sure at the moment. It’s a hamstring but what the extent of it is, we’re not sure.”
“So it’s really unfortunate for her to have to go off. She’s a really tough player and she’s obviously been a massive part of our team for a long time. We’ll just have to see what pans out over the next few days,” she said.
The Australians are now just one win away from the decider on Sunday, but without Perry, the squad will need to step up in order to make it through.
Organisers want to draw a large crowd to the MCG for the final, hoping to break the record of the highest attendance at a standalone women’s sporting fixture. The latest reports indicate more than 50,000 tickets have already been sold.
Australia joins India, South Africa and England in the T20 World Cup semi-finals, which will be played as a double-header at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Thursday. Currently there is rain forecast for the day, and if the games are washed out, the highest ranked teams will advance to the final.